Uzumaki Naruto's brain, which wasn't exactly brilliant to begin with, was now even less capable of processing everything.
It seemed like these people wanted to harm Sara, but Shindai claimed they were just oppressed commoners who had risen in rebellion.
Someone turned on the lights, and the dim room brightened up.
The dozen or so people in the room, all wrapped up tightly, removed their headscarves, masks, and other disguises.
The kid who had just been clutching his head and screaming "Help!" in fear of Uzumaki Naruto's Chakra blade spoke up: "My name is Sarai, and I'm definitely not some suspicious person!"
The woman who had threatened Sara at the beginning also introduced herself: "My apologies, my name is Yako."
The chubby kid, Sarai, scratched his head and said: "We just have a request for Lady Sara, that's all."
Sara asked, confused: "What on earth do you want me to return to you?"
Yako was silent for a moment before saying: "Please come with us, Lady Sara."
Yako and the chubby kid, Sarai, led Shindai, Uzumaki Naruto, and Sara through the sewers and out of a manhole, arriving at the street where a parade was taking place.
Seeing the decorated streets and the cheering people, Sara's mood improved significantly: "How beautiful! Watching the grand parade from here looks exceptionally lovely!"
Uzumaki Naruto sighed: "I'm telling you, now is not the time to be admiring the view."
Sara smiled and said: "This grand parade was organized by An Lushan. He and the citizens are using this event to cheer me up, as I've been incredibly sad since my mother's sudden passing."
The chubby kid, Sarai, said in a strange tone: "That's truly bizarre."
Sara frowned: "What's so strange about it?"
The chubby kid, Sarai, replied: "Everyone has always regarded Lady Sara as a Marionette Princess, and they've all been mocking you!"
Sara found it hard to accept: "A Marionette Princess?!"
Yako scolded the chubby kid, Sarai: "Idiot, shut up right now!"
The chubby kid, Sarai, said nonchalantly: "Yes~"
Yako apologized to Sara: "I am very sorry, Your Majesty, but you can't blame Sarai for saying that. Because one morning, everyone's family members were taken away, and word is that it was under Lady Sara's orders."
Sara retorted: "You're talking nonsense! Stop lying, I never gave any such orders!"
The chubby kid, Sarai, looked at Sara angrily: "Is that really true? My father and older brother were both taken away!"
Yako continued: "We heard they were forced to build weapons of war somewhere in this country, so we had no choice but to come directly to you, Lady Sara..."
Shindai understood everything now.
Shindai stroked his chin and deduced: "In other words, that Mukade disguised himself as An Lushan and bewitched your mother. Although he used the Dragon Vein Power to develop and expand Loulan, turning it into a prosperous country, it also fell into Mukade's conspiracy."
"Mukade disguised himself as a Loulan minister and, in your mother's name or your own, forced the people of this country to build war weapons. Looking at it this way, this chubby kid is right. You are the Marionette Princess, and you are about to become the Marionette Queen."
Uzumaki Naruto tilted his head, thought for a moment, and then slammed his fist into his palm: "That's right! Big Brother Shindai, what you said makes perfect sense!"
Sara refuted excitedly: "This must be a lie! If that's the case, why are so many citizens still welcoming me so enthusiastically?"
The chubby kid, Sarai, said with dissatisfaction: "What citizens welcoming you? What are you talking about!"
Sara pointed at the crowd in front: "Aren't all these citizens cheering and welcoming me right now?"
Shindai squinted at the crowd ahead: "Don't say that, chubby kid. If her citizens are puppets, then they are indeed quite enthusiastic."
Sara gave Shindai a fierce look: "What do you mean by that?!"
Shindai snapped his fingers, and a mass of Sand Iron floated forward, enveloping one of the people.
The person enveloped by the Sand Iron immediately collapsed to the ground.
Shindai used the Sand Iron to lift the person who had fallen to the ground and brought them over.
"There, your puppet citizens. It's all puppets over there; there isn't a single living person. I'm a puppet user myself, so you can't fool my eyes."
Sara looked at the puppet on the ground in disbelief.
Uzumaki Naruto crouched in front of the puppet and injected Chakra into it. Blue Chakra threads appeared, connecting to the pipes in mid-air, where many more Chakra threads emerged.
Uzumaki Naruto looked at the Chakra threads on the pipes and said to Sara: "Sara, do you see it clearly now? The Chakra threads are extending from that pipe."
Sara looked at the pipes solemnly and said: "The power source is flowing there—the Dragon Vein Power."
Shindai and Uzumaki Naruto looked at the many pipes overhead: "So that's how they use those pipes to supply Chakra to the puppets."
Just then.
The door on the balcony of a building opened, and a puppet dressed in the same outfit Sara wore during the day walked out and waved at the puppets below.
Sara's pupils constricted to the limit: "What on earth... is going on here?"
Uzumaki Naruto guessed: "That guy Mukade intends to turn you into a puppet too."
Shindai said gloatingly: "You thought you were so beloved, but it was all fake. Mukade was just playing with you~"
"That's a lie, this isn't real! An Lushan would never do such a thing!"
Unable to accept it at all, Sara rushed directly into the crowd of puppets.
"Sara! Wait! Where are you going? Wait for me!"
Uzumaki Naruto tried to chase after her to stop Sara, but she had already disappeared into the crowd of puppets.
Sara had vanished without a trace, and Uzumaki Naruto had no choice but to return and regroup with Shindai.
Uzumaki Naruto complained: "Big Brother Shindai, can you not provoke people like that!"
Shindai spread his hands: "She can't get away, what's the rush? Let's go."
Uzumaki Naruto asked in surprise: "Big Brother Shindai, you know where she is?"
Shindai nodded: "Yeah, I attached some Sand Iron to her, so we can just track it."
Uzumaki Naruto was immediately happy again and gave Shindai a thumbs up: "As expected of you, Big Brother!"
Shindai lifted his head proudly: "Tch, how could I be your big brother without some skills? Let's go quickly; this Marionette Queen is really quite willful."
Uzumaki Naruto said helplessly: "Stop calling her the Marionette Queen. If you keep saying that, she's definitely going to be unhappy."
Shindai tilted his head and gave a 'Hmph': "What does that have to do with me!"
Uzumaki Naruto sighed and said to Yako and Sarai: "Wait here for us; we're going to go bring Sara back."
Yako and Sarai agreed: "Okay."
Shindai tracked the location of the Sand Iron and soon found Sara, who was sitting dejectedly on the stairs inside a building.
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